AMD Athlon II X3 435 & Athlon II X2 240e Processor Review

Introduction:

AMD has been putting out a wide range of Athlon II based processors, with everything from dual core processors to quad core ones, such as the AMD Athlon II X4 620 reviewed recently by us here at OCC. The Athlon II series is designed to bring powerful processing power to those looking to conservatively spend on computer products, but do not want to be left out of the loop. While not as powerful as their Phenom II counterparts, the Athlon II series provides a stable platform for workstations and mid-range computing systems, and not breaking the bank in doing so. The Athlon II series differs from the Phenom II series by a lack of L3 cache, which the Athlon II's do not have. They still carry the majority of the other features however, such as the support for DDR2 memory when paired with an AM2+ motherboard or DDR3 memory when paired with an AM3 based motherboard. The series also uses HyperTransport 3.0 for fast data transfer speeds. Today, we are going to be taking a look at the newest additions to the Athlon II lineup. The first is the newest Triple Core addition, the Athlon II X3 435, which is generously clocked at a whopping 2.9GHz, and the energy efficient Dual Core Athlon II X2 240e, which is clocked at 2.8GHz and has a very low TDP of only 45 watts.

Closer Look:

The Athlon II X3 435 processor is clocked at 2.9GHz and has a total L1 cache of 384KB and L2 cache of 1.5MB (512KB per core). The X3 435 has a maximum TDP of 95 watts and is manufactured using a 45nm process. There are approximately 300 million transistors and the processor uses HyperTransport 3.0 for a total processor to system bandwidth of either 37.3GB/s when paired with DDR3 1333MHz memory or 33.1GB/s when paired with DDR2 1066MHz memory. The processor is a socket AM3 design which makes it usable in both AM3 and AM2+ motherboards, giving you a nice upgrade path with minimal costs.

The Athlon II X2 240e processor is clocked at 2.8GHz and has a total L1 cache of 356KB and L2 cache of 2MB (1MB per core). The X2 240e has a maximum TDP of 45 watts which makes the heat given off ideal for HTPCs and workstations that require energy efficient designs. The Athlon II X2 240e is manufactured using a 45nm process and there are approximately 234 million transistors. The processor uses HyperTransport 3.0 for a total processor to system bandwidth of 33.GB/s when paired with DDR3 1066MHz memory. This processor is also an AM3 CPU which allows the use in both AM2+ and AM3 motherboards for compatibility and easy upgrade paths.

Now that we have taken a look at the two processors, let's plug them in and see what they can do.